Collapsing Building/Wall Near Gowanus Whole Foods Site

Wandering up Third Street on a walk through Gowanus this weekend so we could, among other things, take a look at the state of things at the future site of the Gowanus Whole Foods, we found an order to vacate taped (dated 9-7) to a light post outside the former site of the Red Hook Crushers. Plus, a notice of violation taped to the door.

"Vacating" is beside the point as Red Hook Crushers has been closed since spring, but we're guessing the Department of Buildings' vocabulary is limited to printed stock on hand. The order is interesting in the sense that the Red Hook Crushers were said to have been shut down because either (a). Whole Foods coveted the property because they need to expand horizontally rather than dig very far into the ground or (b). the crushing operation would have made a bad neighbor to the supermarket, leaving the cars of shoppers coated in dust or (c). both. The violation taped to the door of the former crushers was in the name of the original owner of the property, so it doesn't look like Whole Foods has bought it.

We noticed a large crack running down a wall of the former Red Hook Crushers next to the parking lot.

Meanwhile the entire Whole Foods site is as desolate as can be. The huge lake inside the original excavation remains. There are piles of discarded tires on the sidewalk. And, now, it looks some walls are about to collapse.

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